Tuesday, March 15, 2016

On view from April 4th through April 29th, 2016 Opening Reception: Saturday, April 9th, 2 to 4pm
“April Flowers,” a group exhibition at the Queens College Art Center,
presents floral-themed artworks—paintings and sculptures full of the
joys of spring—by 22 artists.

From the vegetal patterns of
Islamic tile design to Warhol’s iconic silkscreens of hibiscus blossoms,
flowers have long served as artistic inspiration. With a range of color
as dazzling as any artist’s palette, they epitomize brevity and beauty.
Dutch Golden Age “vanitas” canvases often included flowers—bud, bloom
and decay—to symbolize the transience of human existence. Manet’s
poignant paintings of bouquets brought to his bedside by friends during
his final months are celebrations of life. As he suffered from the side
effects of syphilis, the Impressionist painter was revived by flower
arrangements, remarking, “I would like to paint them all.”

As
the azalea bushes and cherry trees bloom across the Queens College
Campus, this exhibit aspires to amplify the sense of renewal and
optimism of springtime. The 22 artists in “April Flowers” vary in style,
but are united by an ebullient approach to their subject matter.

As Tony Bennett sings:

Beneath the deepest snows The secret of a rose Is merely that it knows You must believe in spring

Sunday, March 6, 2016

To look at the bizarre and fantastic paintings of Ignacio Iturria (b. 1949, Uruguay) is to enter his world. These are the stuff of dreams and occasionally nightmares, based in the reality of blinding light and convincing shadow. Improbable scenes made possible, as the scale of things are free to slide.

I am a painter born and living in Philadelphia. I started this blog as a way to organize and collect my own sources of inspiration, and reflect on my experiences looking at and making paintings. With so much art buzzing around the internet, I felt like carving out this little space for a particular type of seeing and making, and drawing connections between them.